This Month's (November) Satisfaction Level

I made a lot of activities for my high school this month. Some were big hits and some were just average. The rating of course depend on the satisfaction level of my JTEs, which, I have learned to decipher. If they really liked it, they won’t stop praising it till the lesson for all the sections is over. If they didn't like it, they’d say something like “hmmmm so, well that was a good activity but maybe it’s too difficult for the students.” Don’t you just love how polite they can be?

There is Joy everyday…

In my opinion, the best joy in the life of a teacher is when she knows that she is able to effect a positive change in her students. Before I came to Japan to study, I was a teacher at the university. I have seen many students fail and pass my courses. I saw them graduate college and high school. I saw in their eyes the dreams that they have and the will to achieve their respective dreams. Although compared to elementary, college level students are already a bit cynical and jaded by the realities of life but there is still that spark of youth, idealism and enthusiasm. That spark is what I always look for whenever I enter a class.

Now that I am teaching junior high school and elementary school students in Japan, I can see a lot of sparks every time. My heart jumps whenever I see enthusiasm for learning from my students especially in the elementary and kindergarten. But, I am most moved when I see a bit of light where there was none. It is like seeing a weak, drooping plant suddenly springing to life with the water it has just received.

Dealing with children of ages 3 to 16, I can see varying levels of enthusiasm. Sometimes, I see extremes in just one class. One day, they’d go through my class like zombies and then the next they’d be like wild animals suddenly out of their cages and of course on good days, they’d be well behaved, participative and cooperative in class. Whatever day it is, I always try to see something that would make my day. Even just one student who would stay after class to talk to me in gibberish English or even if there is only one hand raised out of 30, that is already enough to lift me up. I refuse to be dragged to a sea of desperation and negativism because I noticed that if I consent to it, I’d slip back to speaking Japanese to the kids which of course, would defeat the purpose of me trying to teach them English.